I haven’t played the HOUR yet. Not sure if it’s a model I am interested in. At the moment, YYE does not even have the HOUR in a colorway I would even consider though. However, Werrd makes some fantastic stuff. I have a TFL and a 4XL and want to get an Irony, and the Sentinel looks pretty good to me as well. All you’ve shown for now is based on your developing preferences, it appears this isn’t a good fit for you. Sorry to hear it isn’t working out.
What else do you have?
At 59.9mm in diameter, this is something on the larger side of things. The 40.8mm width seems a bit narrow for the diameter, but in general, this is more than generous catch zone. My guess is that the fact that this is so “large” is probably where your issue is. Maybe you have small hands, maybe you’re not getting your strings where they need to be on your hands and/or fingers and with the larger size, you’re just bouncing off strings that you’re trying to avoid. For the size, the 66.7 grams seems a bit light, I’d expect this closer to the 69-71gram range. But, it’s using 7075 aluminum, so ods are it’s thin where it can be, and thicker in the rim area, pushing a lot of mass to the outside, which should provide a nice stable platform. The yoyo in general reminds me of a metal Northstar/Protostar just on a real quick look at the shape.
So, what’s next? It’s hard to say. I totally understand the shipping. We forget here in the United States, international shipping and the value of our dollar towards a product vs the value of another nation’s currency and economic standards, what may seem inexpensive or easily affordable is far out of the price range for others. Then with expensive shipping(no money made on shipping here that I’m aware of), it’s another big hit. It’s like you have to spend enough to make it worth the expense. As is, you’re going to have to buy big, and that can be a big set-back for you.
Usinng $60 as the working budget, let me see what I’ve got that I like. Of what I got that I like, if I got it, generally speaking I like it.
At $45-$55 you have the YYF dv888. To me this is kind of boring. It’s good, don’t let me say that it’s a bad yoyo because it isn’t. But for me, it’s not really anything special. It plays a bit heavy on the string, it’s dense, small(around 50mm diameter). Its just kind of bland to me. Others swear by it. I would go as far as to say it’s a “standard”. I’m glad I have one.
You may have seen other topics include the C3YoYoDesign DiBase. At $55, it’s amazing. I also hear great things about the Capless, which is at $65 I think and a model I am considering getting. The V-shapes give you great catch zones and the soft shaped rims are comfortable and hold a lot of weight. Good for most styles of play(not 2A), and can do horizontal as this shape caters well to it. I have the DiBase and would consider a Capless. Also, if you’re into Delrin, the Halo is a different shape, more traditional butterfly. Different play, very good player and only $55!
Another to consider might be the sOMEThING Firmy. $64. V-shaped. Good play and balance, and way affordable.
The One Drop Cafe Racer feels a but under-performing to me. It’s a good yoyo, and I think it sells for $60.
I could go into more stuff, plastics, plastic/metals, way up and down the price sheet. I just don’t have a whole lot in that $50-80 price range.
I could also go on in better and more detail but I’d end up going off the map here and recommending models YYE doesn’t carry. However, don’t overlook the Shinwoo Zen series or God Tricks. Both are “budget-minded” brands, but don’t give budget-minded performance. This is some good stuff at good prices and they all perform at at least twice their price.
Also, Duncan makes the Raptor, Echo and Metropolis. I have the Metropolis and the first one had an issue with chewing up strings, so Duncan replaced it and the 2nd one is fine. I have plans to get a Raptor and Echo at Nationals this weekend. At around $40, these are really good yoyos. Sure, they may be budget oriented, but they do not lack anything in performance or fun. I can’t wait to add these to the collection. In fact, these are my priority purchases.
Also, don’t ignore RecRev. Low on price, tremendous in performance. This brand keeps cash in your account while providing an amazing play experience. Two of their models are on my wants list for Nationals: TA-1S(delrin, as I have the TA-1), and the new Freq. Wav. I also have two Sharps. The Facade is also amazing and I’m really liking this one a LOT. It even has two IRG rings n each side and a slight inside undercut.
But without additional budget and knowing if your HOUR is something you’re going to trade/sell off and at what kind of price with shipping converted to US Dollars(or I can currency convert it based on day rate, which isn’t a big deal), it’s hard to make real good recommendations.
My only recommendation is that CLYW tends to sell out fast. They do make amazing stuff. So does One Drop. These may be very hyped brands, but I find that for the most part they live up to the hype. You might consider the Avalance, Code 1, Code 2, Burnside, Arctic Circle, Chief and many others. Also, while not one of my favorite brands, don’t ignore YYF’s metals. The Roll Model and Equilateral are very good. The Superstar is one of my favorites, as is the MVP. I feel the Mutant DNA is probably not a good fit as it’s round shaped but mostly due to it being so heavy, but I like heavy.
Keep asking questions. For you, this is NOT an area you want to make a mistake on.
